Opinion

The Philosophy of Islamic Teachings (24)

07/10/23

The Aim of Human Life, and the Means for its Attainment

There are people whose limited vision and lack of resolve lead them to set objectives for their lives that are limited to worldly goals and ambitions. But the goal that the Exalted God indicates for man, in His Holy Word, is as follows:

islam.4

"For I have not created the jinn and mankind except to acknowledge and worship Me" (51:57).

Hence the true end of man's life is to worship God, to know Him and to show complete devotion to Him. It is evident that man cannot choose the aim of his own life, for he does not come into this world, nor does he leave it of his own free will. He is a creature, and He who created him and bestowed upon him faculties better and higher than those of other animals, also appointed for him the object of his life. Whether man understands it or not, the object of man's creation is undoubtedly to worship God, to know Him and to surrender himself to Him.

In another part of the Holy Quran, God Exalted says:

islam6

"Islam is the religion that provides true knowledge of God, and teaches the best way to worship Him." (3:20).

islam8

"Islam is inherent in human nature, and man has been created for Islam. This is the eternal faith" (30:30-31).

This means that God has desired that man should devote himself with all his faculties to the love, obedience and worship of God. That is why He has given man all the faculties appropriate for Islam.

These verses have a very broad meaning, a part of which we have expounded in the third part of the reply to the first consideration. Here we wish to state briefly that the true aim of the external and internal faculties that have been granted to man is the love, knowledge and worship of God. That is why, in spite of devoting himself to various projects of this life, man does not find his true well-being except in God. After having been very rich, having held high office, having been a great merchant, having ruled an important kingdom, or having been known as a great philosopher, in the end man has to give it all up with great regret. His heart always reproves him for his total preoccupation with the affairs of this world, and his conscience never accepts malice, falsehood and unlawful activities.

An intelligent person can appreciate the problem also from this approach: the goal of all things is to be the highest expression, the highest performance that his faculties allow, beyond which the faculties cannot go. For example, an ox's main function is to plough the land, to draw water or to carry. Its faculties are not adapted to anything else. Therefore, the functions of an ox are limited to these three things. It has no power to do anything else. But when we study the faculties of man, and try to discover their highest scope, we see that he seeks God the Exalted. Man so strongly desires to devote himself to God that he keeps nothing for himself, but everything for God. He shares with the animals the natural needs of sleeping, feeding, etc. In the field of industry some animals are more advanced than he is. Bees, for example, extract the essence of different kinds of flowers, and produce a honey of such high quality that man has not yet been able to equal it. It is evident, therefore, that the highest attainment of human faculties is to know God the Exalted. Hence the true object of his life is to open the window of his heart to God.

Means for the attainment of man's goal.

It may be asked, how is it possible to attain this end, and by what means can a person find God?

The first way to achieve this goal is to recognise the Exalted God correctly, and to believe in the True God. For if the first step is wrong, that is, if a person has as his god a bird, an animal, the elements, or the offspring of a human being, there can be no hope that he will walk on the right path to God. The true God helps those who seek Him, but how can a dead god help the dead? In this context God the Glorious gives us an excellent illustration:

islam-3

"To Him alone is true prayer addressed. Those whom they call upon instead of Him do not answer them at all, except as he is answered who stretches out his two hands towards water so that it may reach his mouth, but it does not reach him. The prayer of the unbelievers is but a waste" (13:15).

The second means to the real end of life is to know the perfect beauty of the Exalted God; the heart is naturally attracted to beauty, and by observing it, love is generated in the heart. The beauty of God consists of His Oneness, His Greatness, His Majesty and His other attributes, as stated in the Holy Quran:

ialam5

"God is Unique in His being, in His attributes and in His glory. He has no partner. We are all dependent on Him. He bestows life on every particle. He is the source of grace for all things, and is not dependent on the favours of anyone. He is neither son nor father, for He has no equal, nor has He a peer." (112:2-6).

The Quran frequently draws our attention to the greatness and majesty of God, thus instilling in the human mind that only this God can be the desired goal of our heart, and not a dead, weak, ruthless or impotent being.

The third means of approaching God consists in knowing His goodness; for beauty and goodness are the two incentives of love. God's attributes of goodness are summed up in Sura Al Fatiha with the words:

islam7

"That is to say that God creates His servants out of nothing by His Goodness, and makes His Providence always available to all. He is the support of all things, and all forms of His goodness have been manifested towards His creatures" (1:2-4).

His goodness has no limit, as He says:

islam-1